An Inspector Calls — Characters and Themes
<h3>Key Characters</h3>
<table style="width:100%;border-collapse:collapse">
<tr style="background:#f0f9f4"><th style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd">Character</th><th style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd">Significance</th></tr>
<tr><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd"><strong>Inspector Goole</strong></td><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd">Mysterious figure who interrogates the family. Represents Priestley's socialist conscience.</td></tr>
<tr><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd"><strong>Arthur Birling</strong></td><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd">Self-made capitalist; dismisses social responsibility. Represents the complacent upper class.</td></tr>
<tr><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd"><strong>Sybil Birling</strong></td><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd">Coldest character; refuses responsibility. Represents class snobbery.</td></tr>
<tr><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd"><strong>Sheila Birling</strong></td><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd">Begins selfish; ends morally awakened — represents hope for the younger generation.</td></tr>
<tr><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd"><strong>Eric Birling</strong></td><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd">Alcoholic; responsible for Eva's pregnancy; ultimately accepts responsibility.</td></tr>
<tr><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd"><strong>Eva Smith</strong></td><td style="padding:8px;border:1px solid #ddd">Never appears; represents all working-class women exploited and failed by society.</td></tr>
</table>
<h3>Key Themes</h3>
<ul>
<li><strong>Social responsibility</strong> — "We are responsible for each other." The Inspector's core message.</li>
<li><strong>Class and inequality</strong> — the Birlings' wealth allows them to exploit the poor</li>
<li><strong>Gender</strong> — women have little power; Eva is vulnerable to men at every turn</li>
<li><strong>Generational change</strong> — the young accept responsibility; the old do not</li>
<li><strong>Time</strong> — written in 1945 but set in 1912; Priestley comments on failure to learn from WW1</li>
</ul>